The Rant Of Summer

Yes, for years the breeders have been making sweet corn more and more sugary, but i never thought it was necessary in the first place.  i loved sweet corn since i was a child, and while i do like the "new" varieties a LITTLE better, they are almost too sweet at times. So, breeder guys, it's OK to stop now!

What i really want is a sweet corn plant that bears multiple ears! i know corn plants are extremely heavy feeders and that one huge stalk is there only to produce that one lonesome ear of corn (sometimes two), but that really needs to be addressed, especially for us home gardeners who don't have room for a FIELD of corn! So there it is.

 "Your mission, Jim, should you decide to accept it,

is to produce five eared corn plants. As always, should you or any member of your I.M. Force be caught or killed, the secretary will disavow any knowledge of your actions. This tape will self-destruct in five seconds."

"Mmmmmm....cornnnnn..." Did i sound like Homer Simpson?

 

Now, the breeders had a great idea when they worked on seedless watermelon!  

Hey! Let's scare the kids!

i had my complaints about that too, especially in the transitional years, when, oh sure, the hard black seeds were gone, but thousands of tiny immature seeds took their place, the kind that were impossible to eat around or spit out!

They would advertise that those seeds were so tiny and soft that you wouldn't know you were eating them, but unfortunately, some of us DID. i would say that just in the past two seasons, i finally have eaten an actual SEEDLESS watermelon! Ahhh, my life is complete.

....Oh, 'cept for that CORN business....!

Can Or Can Not?

When i was young , i was spoiled when it came to veggies. Not spoiled by the usual definition, such as i got whatever i wanted and had access to all the types and varieties. No, i mean "spoiled" meaning my love for decent vegetables was spoiled forever because of the processed, canned junk my mother always served. Now, she seasoned everything well, i could never complain, i pretty much liked her cooking (except for those hideous potato pancakes! Blech!), but it was only after i left that house that i realized that all fruits and vegetables could be grown and eaten FRESH. Except for tomatoes, sweet corn, and watermelon, which are plentiful in our area in their just picked form at all the little roadside stands every summer, i pretty much had canned veggies all the time.

 Generally, even to this day, i prefer canned over fresh. i have taught myself to like fresh snap beans (fried in bacon grease, leeks and/or onions! mmmm), and i'm just beginning to appreciate fresh asparagus, but really not much else.

i was not even aware of home canning till my MIL showed me how. Still, freshly canned beets or pickles?

 Naw. i would rather eat out of those ubiquitous cans and jars at the grocery store. i don't really like peas, but if i do eat them, they're canned. i have even grown my own and could not get used to the taste (too much trouble shucking them, too!).

Don't worry ~ i've adapted, but if you see my garden and wonder why it's not more diverse, well...